Chennai: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will address election rallies in Tamil Nadu today evening, in his first set of such engagements after the announcement of the poll schedule.
The Wayanad MP will address a public meeting in Coimbatore along with DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin. He will also address a rally in Tirunelveli. The Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu will be held on April 19.
Around 2,500 police personnel will be deployed for security and law and order management in connection with the election rally of Stalin and Rahul Gandhi.
Tamil Nadu will poll for the Lower House in a single phase, on April 19, in the seven-phased Lok Sabha elections.
Aiming to make deeper electoral inroads south of the Vindhyas, which has remained a virtually impregnable fortress for the Opposition, barring Karnataka, where the BJP been the ruling party, and Kanyakumari in 2014, the ruling party at the Centre unleashed top gun in the Lok Sabha battle this time, fielding state chief Annamalai from Coimbatore.
However, the DMK, which remains a preeminent force in the state, is expected to profit from the split in the principal opposition player in the state–the AIADMK.
The DMK, which is contesting 22 seats, leads an eight-party alliance that includes the Congress, which is contesting 9 seats; the CPI(M) and the CPI that are contesting 2 seats each; the Indian Muslim League, which has fielded a lone candidate; the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, which is contesting 2 seats, the Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which has fielded a lone candidate; and the Kongunadu Makkal Desia Katchi (KMDK), whose candidate will contest on the DMK symbol.
The BJP, which is contesting 23 seats, will go into the polls with nine other partners; including the Pattali Makkal Katchi on 10 seats), the Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar) on 3 seats, former Tamil Nadu chief minister and AIADMK leader O Pannerselvam, who is contesting as an Independent; Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMU), headed by TTV Dhinakaran, on 2 seats, and the Indhiya Jananayaga Katchi, Puthiya Needhi Katchi and Tamizhaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam on one seat each.
However, the latter three parties are contesting on the BJP’s ‘lotus’ symbol.